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Grand Duke Nicholas
Nicholas Alexandrovich Romanov '''Nicholas Alexandrovich''', '''Nicholas II,''' Tsesarevich and Grand Duke of Russia (Russian: Цесаревич Николай Александрович, Наследник-Цесаревич и Великий Князь) (20 September [O.S. 8 September] 1843 – 24 April [O.S. 12 April] 1925) was Tsesarevich—the heir apparent—of Imperial Russia from 2 March 1855 until his father's death in 1881. He ruled from 1881 to his death in 1925. Nicholas' most significant reform as Emperor was the creation of the Russian Duma and constitution, for which he is sometimes known as '''Nicholas the Just.''' The tsar was responsible for other reforms, including contiuation of the reforms of serfdom, and promoting universal suffrage, education, and healthcare. Nicholas was responsible for introducing airships to Russia and fostering greater ties with the West. Early Life Born at the Alexander Palace in St. Petersburg and nicknamed "Nixa", he was the eldest son of the Tsesarevich Alexander Nikolaevich, eldest son of Emperor Nicholas I, and the Tsarevna Maria Alexandrovna of Russia. In 1855, his paternal grandfather died, and his father succeeded to the throne as Emperor Alexander II. Nicholas spent much of his childhood under careful tutelage and with required travel, much like his father Alexander II. His tutor was the statesman Pobedonotsev. As tsesarevich, he spoke multiple languages and was skilled at many arts. By the time he reached his majority at 16 in a spectacular ceremony held in Moscow, Nicholas had already entered into striking good looks and a sereneness in his gaze that was remarked upon by everyone. '''Engagement''' Whether or not Nicholas, as Grand Duke, was actually bethrothed to [[Princess Mercy, Adelaide Marie|Princess Mercy Adelaide Marie]] of the United Kingdom is unclear. During the Treaty of Paris in 1856, the tsar and former king, the respective fathers, met in secret to discuss the fate of their empires following the Crimean War. [[Prince William Frederick]] allegedly offered the Princess' hand, which the tsar refused based on allegations of her race, her low status, and her title as a British princess, but seemed to consider once William Frederick offered a generous dowry, the promise of airships, and the city of Constantinople. The Duke of Ironwood's "back-door diplomacy," in which he manipulated continental events even while lacking the crown, cannot be overstated here. Following the Duke of Ironwood's death, any talk of engagement between the two ceased. Instead, in the summer of 1864, Nicholas became engaged to Princess Dagmar of Denmark. She was the second daughter of King Christian IX of Denmark and Louise of Hesse-Kassel and was a younger sister of the Princess of Wales, later Queen Alexandra and wife of the heir-apparent to the British throne, Albert Edward, who reigned as Edward VII. On 9 November [O.S. 28 October] 1866 in the Grand Church of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, Nicholas wed Dagmar, who converted to Orthodox Christianity and took the name Maria Feodorovna. Reign '''Continuing of Alexandrine Reform''' As tsar, Nicholas was able to continue many of the reforms left unfinished by his father, Alexander. This included expanding the emancipation of the serfs and the zemtsvo system into a legitimate hiearchical bureaucracy that included all of Russia. Like the great tsars before him, his reform was mainly Western, and yet he adopted a policy of innovating Western practices and thuroughly 'Russifying' them so as to appeal to the opposition. Recognizing how German unification occured first by the people, per [[Captain Edmund Belfry]], Nicholas strengthened the idea of the ''narodnost'', the soul of the people, across the Empire. '''Creation of Polish Kingdom''' 1863 had been a pivotal year for the Grand Duke, but as tsar, the Polish revolutions that occured that year posed an increasing problem. Using Poland as a sort of test run, he restored the Polish constitution that his father had taken away and put a constitutional monarch, Alexander I, in place as Catherine the Great did a century prior. While Nicholas publically recognized Alexander as his son '''Creation of Duma''' '''Capture of Constantinople ''' Death and Legacy Following the military parade in Constantinople, Nicholas fell ill with a rapidly worsening cold. Instead of returning directly to Petersburg, he insisted on traveling by airship to Nice, where the cold settled into pneumonia. In the early morning of April 24, 1925, delerium set in, and he was heard calling out for Mercy as his last words. "Captivating! Captivating!" He had no successor, and per his request, the country began the transition into a post-tsarist state. Marriage and Children His marriage to Maria Feodorovna was childless. He had one surviving son, [[Grand Duke Alexander Nikolaevich|Alexander Nikolaevich]], who predeceased him as King of Poland. Relationship with Princess Mercy